Tuesday, March 22, 2005

Judge Rules in Schiavo Case

Ever since Republicans in Congress announced that they would be stepping in to interfere with the state of Florida and the family of Terri Schiavo, the woman who has been in a vegetative state since 1990, when her heart stopped briefly due to a chemical imbalance, resulting in brain damage.

Over the weekend, Republicans took the extraordinary step of interfering with the state of Florida in order to make the decision about Schiavo's fate. Grandstanding politicians, who apparently were not aware of the three previous times Schiavo's feeding tube was removed, deemed themselves as a sort of surrogate guardian for Schiavo. No matter what Schiavo's husband has said in regards to his wife's wishes not to be kept alive by life support equipment.

Republicans were even ready to issue a subpoena for Schiavo to appear before a Senate committee as a "witness." Talk about grandstanding.

More grandstanding can be found on conservative talk radio, on the cable news debate shows, and in blogs, as people who do not know Terri Schiavo or her family decide her fate for her. Typically, conservatives are playing this up as a conservative vs. Liberal issue, with the accusation that liberals want Terri Schiavo to die.

I feel awful for her parents. Surely they believed that when Congress intervened to have the case heard before a federal judge, the judge would rule in their favor. Sadly, he did not.

U.S. District Judge James Whittemore denied the request to reinsert Schiavo's feeding tube. The case is being appealed to the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, before a three-judge panel. If the Court of Appeals follows the numerous rulings of other courts, the tube will not be reinserted.

I know there will be some readers who will say I want Terri Schiavo to die. My opinion does not matter in this situation. It's a private family matter. The family, the Florida court system, and the doctors involved should be the ones to decide this case, not the media and not by politicians.